


Unwarranted Hostility

by Kyoki1125



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Galra Keith (Voltron), Hurt Keith (Voltron), Keith (Voltron) Needs a Hug, Keith is desperate for love and acceptance, Keith just wants a Family, M/M, Mating Bonds, Mentions of self-harm, Non-Graphic Panic Attacks, Non-Graphic Self-Harm, Protective Lance (Voltron), Purring Keith (Voltron), Someone love him, There's some fluff in this somewhere. I swear, Xenophobia, You just have to dig through the sadness, first fic, no beta we die like men, outsider pov, slight homophobia, stereotyping
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-07
Updated: 2020-12-07
Packaged: 2021-03-10 04:48:10
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,534
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27928534
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kyoki1125/pseuds/Kyoki1125
Summary: Marco knows fighting in a war will change someone. He knows that being away from your family for five years will make reconnecting with them harder.But he just can't understand Lance's behavior beyond that.Why does he talk to a comatose person every night?Why does he cry to this person, wishing they were there with him instead of Lance's family?What does this comatose, nameless person have over Lance's family?Marco was so sure that Lance had finally come back, returned to his family after fighting a war in space. Now, though, Marco is convinced that the Lance that returned isn't the Lance Marco wanted to come back.
Relationships: Keith/Lance
Comments: 14
Kudos: 384





	Unwarranted Hostility

**Author's Note:**

> So, I'm going to warn the more squeamish readers here. There will be panic attacks, self-harm, and homophobia. None of it is extensive or very graphic, but I wanted to warn you anyway. 
> 
> Also, this entire work has a very angry tone to it. People are mean and judgemental for no good reason. I took Keith's emotions and shot them with a rifle. It's not overly obvious, but Keith has a rough time in this fic, so if you're not into that, I would advise you to leave.

Marco knows it's a blessing to have Lance back. He knows that there was little hope of the McClains getting him back after he went missing for almost 5 years. Even the police dropped the case, seeing as there was little evidence to where he went after his sighting with Pidge Gunderson, Hunk Garret, and, most worryingly, Keith Kogane. 

After a couple of years, the Garrison released the records of the 4 cadets, and for the McClains, things started to fall into place fairly quickly. Keith Kogane was a great student, that is undeniable, but he was also violent, quick to anger, volatile. He was expelled for attacking his senior officer. Who's to say he didn't kill the three cadets that stopped him from freeing Takashi Shirogane?

The McClains definitely weren't ready to see their son turn up on their doorstep, scarred and wearing alien armor, but they adapted quickly. Lance was back. He was alive. That was all that mattered. 

It's been two weeks since Lance came back, and now, Marco is almost certain that there's something different about Lance. Yes, he was in space fighting a _war_ , and war changes people, but there's almost something fundamentally wrong with Lance now. He's paranoid. He stares off into space with a scowl on his face. His smiles don't completely reach his eyes. 

Marco is pretty sure he's the only one who's noticed, and now that he has, he spends most of his time looking over his younger brother. He can pick up on the darkness swirling behind Lance's ocean eyes, and he constantly sees the way Lance's muscles tense whenever someone comes upon him from behind. How can he not notice the way his hands jump toward his hip - as if reaching for a weapon - when something surprises him?

It's the middle of the night when Marco learns another thing different in Lance. Something that he doubts he would have found out about any other way. 

He rubs his eyes, cursing whatever woke him up, and grabs a glass of water from the kitchen. Marco walks toward the porch, intent on stargazing until he feels ready to go back to sleep, but the sight of Lance reclining in the rocking chair out there makes him go still. Lance is gripping that alien communicator, and through the open window, Marco can hear the sound of rhythmic beeping.

Like a heart monitor. 

Lance's lips are moving as well, as if counting the beeps. The communicator illuminates the sharp, new edges of Lance's face, and Lance is eerily still as he religiously counts the heartbeats. The entire world it seems like is completely silent except for the beeping, so it's jarring when Lance starts talking.

"Hey. I know. . . I know this is going to sound horrible, but I'm. . . Fuck, I have no idea how to say this. I just. . . I miss you. You're the only thing I'm thinking about down here, and it's. . . I don't feel guilty about it. I'm finally with my family; you worked so hard to get me back here. But. . . It doesn't feel the same, you know? I've missed them so much, and now. . . the only thing I'm missing is you.

"I guess, when I thought about coming back to Earth, I. . . You're supposed to be here. None of this. . . It doesn't feel right without you here. And I know how horrible that sounds. I'm so, _so_ happy to be back on Earth, but _you're supposed to be here._ "

The words are whispered reverently, and the grief and fear in them is so sincere it even has Marco's heart clenching a little. But anger washes away those emotions. How _dare_ someone make Lance regret coming home to his family. How _dare_ they make Earth not seem like Lance's home anymore. _Nothing_ should be more important than Lance's family, and Marco feels an instinctive hatred rising in him. 

This mystery person, this person who's stolen and warped Lance's mind. Marco refuses to trust them. As long as they stand in the way of Lance and his family, they have no place in this family. 

The McClains won't welcome them, no matter what Lance's opinion of them is. 

* * *

The days grow longer, harder to struggle through. Lance seems to only grow more distant. Marco glares at the back of his younger brother's head sometimes, wondering what must have gone wrong in his head for him to have placed someone else above his family. He doesn't hate Lance, exactly. He's just taking his anger for Lance's unknown person on Lance. It isn't fair, Marco knows, but it's the only release he has. The only release he's pretty sure he'll ever get. 

Lance talks to the alien communicator every night, and he listens to the heartbeat for hours at a time. Marco even catches him doing it a couple of times during the day. Lance never notices Marco during these moments; it's the only time Lance is completely relaxed, and a pang of hatred shoots through Marco every time he sees it. Hatred toward this unknown, injured person. 

Lance is regaling a tale about a planet he went to, one with pink water and where it rained slime from the sky. "The people there - I forget the name now - are like these goo people! It was definitely one of the coolest planets we've been to, even though we weren't there for very long. We didn't get that many breaks, so it was nice to chill on a pink goo planet for once. After a day or so, I even got K-"

Lance cuts off whatever he was going to say, an odd lost look in his eyes. Marco knows he isn't the only one who notices it this time. Mom and Dad both shoot Lance worried looks, and Veronica is pale next to Luis. _K. Is that who's stolen Lance from us?_ Whoever this 'K' is, they have to be important to Lance. 

"Anyway, the next planet we visited. . ."

Lance continues his story as if he hadn't just frozen up thinking about someone, and the rest of the family is quick to forget the slip-up, all too eager to pretend that nothing is wrong with Lance. After all, he acts enough like the 17-year-old Lance to be believable. He's taller, more muscled, but at the end of the day, he's still Lance.

It might be enough for everyone else, but Marco has seen too much. He's seen the way Lance goes still sometimes, lost in thought. How none of them can read Lance anymore, and Lance can't read them either. 

The others want to pretend everything is okay, but Marco doesn't. He can't. Not anymore.

* * *

Marco wakes to a scream. An unfamiliar scream in a very familiar voice. 

_Lance._

He practically throws himself out of bed, nearly tripping down the stairs in his rush to get downstairs. 

What he sees nearly makes him vomit. 

Lance is cowering in the kitchen, a long knife gripped in his hands. He's pointing it threateningly at Dad, blue eyes wide and unseeing. Wherever Lance is right now, it's not the McClain kitchen. Marco grinds his teeth. He's heard Lance call out in the middle of the night before, quiet and not nearly enough to wake someone up, but now, it's obvious that space messed with Lance in more ways than one. 

The entire family is frozen, staring in horror as Lance flinches when Dad tries to calm him down. No one can miss the way Lance grips the knife tighter, his expression switching from horror to fury, and Marco's heart rams against his ribcage when Lance blinks a couple of times, clarity returning to his blue eyes.

The knife clatters to the floor in a sound that reverberates in Marco's head. None of them move, in fear of triggering something again, but it physically hurts to see Lance's eyes start glistening with tears. Marco's stomach twists as Lance slides down to the floor, hands over his eyes and fingers digging into his scalp. 

Still, no one moves to help. No one knows what to do. What is it that they even can do? 

It feels like hours that they stand there, all of them shell-shocked and horrified at what they just witnessed. 

Eventually, Marco can't take it anymore. He turns around and walks out of the kitchen. He doesn't have to look to know that a couple of the others are following after him. 

_What are we going to do?_

* * *

Lance is nowhere to be found the next day. He vanished during the night, and none of them have any idea where he went. Mom is beside herself, pacing restlessly in the living room. Marco knows that everyone is assuming the worst, that Lance is gone for real this time, but he, for once, is glad that Lance is out of the house. 

_Lance will come back._

Around noon, Dad sits all the adults down at the table. Mom takes Silvio and Nadia out of the house so they don't have to listen to the serious conversation about to happen.

"You were all there last night. How we've been treating things has clearly been the wrong way to go about this situation."

Veronica opens the conversation, as blunt and straightforward as always. 

"What _is_ there to do?!" Rachel snaps. "He was _terrified_ of us! Lance looked like he wanted to kill us!"

"It's PTSD," Lisa whispers. "He wasn't really seeing us last night."

Marco nods. "We should have realized that Lance would have some kind of mental scarring from fighting in space. He has physical scars, so there must be some trauma to go along with them."

"Well, we can't exactly take him to a therapist, can we?" Rachel grumbles.

"No, we can't. But," Dad says, "we can be there for him. This doesn't have to change anything. As long as we make sure Lance is comfortable, nothing has to change. If he doesn't want to acknowledge what happened, then we won't either. It's a delicate situation, and I think I'm speaking for all of us when I say I don't want anything to get worse."

"So we're going to do nothing?" Veronica asks, her stunned voice echoing what Marco is sure everyone else is thinking. 

"For right now," Dad replies. "If it happens again, we'll talk again."

Marco wants this to be a one-time thing, for it to not happen again, but he has a sinking feeling that this won't be the only time he'll be seated down at this table, unable to do anything but watch as his brother grows further and further apart from the family that should mean everything to him.

* * *

That night - several hours after Lance walked back into the house, smiling like nothing was wrong - Marco sneaks downstairs around the time he knows Lance does his ritualistic 'listen to a comatose person's heartbeat' session. He shouldn't be infringing on Lance's privacy like this, but he wants to hear what his younger brother is going to say this time. 

Much to Marco's surprise, Lance starts crying the second he pulls up his communicator thingy. His heart is hammering in his chest; he's never heard Lance cry like this before. Last night, it was nearly silent, almost nonexistent, as Lance was silently dealing with horrors Marco doubts he'll ever learn about. 

Lance from the past would have never cried in front of someone, always too self-conscious to really show someone that vulnerability, but the few times Marco was able to get Lance to come to him to cry, Lance was a mess. He would be sobbing and blowing snot everywhere, venting emotion in a very, very messy way.

Now, though, Lance is hiccupping and stumbling over his words, ranting something in a language Marco doesn't understand to someone Marco doesn't know. Like the night before, Marco has no idea what to do. He can't comfort his younger brother, like he did when Lance was younger. He can't just walk away, with this image of a desperate, weeping Lance ranting to someone who's stolen his place as Lance's support. 

Marco feels that he has to do _something._ But he has no idea what he could possibly do, no way to comfort his brother when he has no grasp on how Lance is feeling. 

In that moment, Marco realizes something, something that he had been trying to push away for the longest time. 

He really knows nothing about Lance, not after what he went through up in space.

His Lance didn't actually come home.

 _His_ Lance is dead in space somewhere.

And there's nothing he can do to change that. 

* * *

It's been three days since the Nightmare Incident. Two since Marco witnessed The Breakdown. 

He can see the rifts in the family. Rachel is angry and bitter. Veronica is constantly arguing with Dad. Mom is bottling everything up. The kids are blissfully unaware. Marco? He isn't sure how he feels, other than an overwhelming feeling of spiraling doubt and fear. 

The McClains are lounging around the living room now, enjoying the silence before they have to undoubtedly have another night of paranoia. Marco knows none of them have slept through an entire night, all of them too worried if Lance is going to scream again. If Lance is going to forget where he is, that he's _safe_ now. 

Lance is draped over one of the couches, tall, long body taking up the entire space. Something beeps, and Lance jumps into the air, one hand closing around the communicator he must always have on him. 

A hologram bursts out of the open communicator, and a tall, bearded man - _are those pointed ears!? -_ begins to speak to Lance in that same language from The Breakdown. 

Lance's eyes narrow dangerously, and Marco doesn't like the edge in them. "What do you mean, he just _left_?!" Lance snaps, anger flowing off him in palpable waves.

Every McClain flinches at the tone, but they don't dare interrupt the conversation.

"Are you fucking-" Lance's sentence cuts off into the alien language again. He storms over to the door, throwing it open without any preamble. "I'm going to wring his neck!" Marco hears Lance scream from outside. 

Through the window, Marco can see Lance sprinting in the direction of the beach, and after a moment's hesitation, the rest of the family starts running after him. Marco and Veronica share a look, and a feeling of sinking dread starts to mate itself home in Marco's stomach. Whatever's happening, if it makes Lance this mad, it can't be good. 

Lance gets to the beach before any of them - predictably - and he's still ranting to the pointy-eared man, but Marco only catches a couple of fragmented phrases in English. 

"I thought you said there was going to be someone with him!" Lance shouts at the man, the clearest English sentence that has come out of his mouth in the last 20 minutes. 

"I believe it was Pidge's turn-"

"You left _Pidge_ with him?! She let him leave! Are you fucking insane, Coran?!"

"Lance-"

"SHUT UP!" Lance roars. "If he dies because of your incompetence, I am going to make you regret coming out of your cryopod, _got it_?"

Marco feels Veronica shudder next to him. The family is spread out behind him, with Veronica at his side, and they watch as Lance taps his foot on the sand impatiently, still grumbling things under his breath while the hologram man tilts his head, appearing to be talking with someone else.

Just as the hologram finally disappears, Lance's eyes narrow, and Marco can see his jaw tighten. A red blur appears in the sky moments later, and Marco can see Lance rubbing his shoulder, something like a pained grimace breaking through the unimpressed and very intimidating scowl on Lance's face. 

Marco swallows around a lump in his throat as a massive Red Lion lands on the sand, the air around it sizzling and smoking from the heat. He nearly has a heart attack as Lance stalks - there's really no other word for Lance's movement - up to the machine, just as it leans down and the massive metal jaws open.

Unlike his family, Lance is not intimidated by the massive lion in any way. He stands in front of the lowered jaw, arms crossed and foot tapping against the sand.

After a few moments, a man walks into view, his steps slow and measured. As he reaches the ramp, he pauses. Gloved hands reach up and pull off the white and red helmet he's wearing. Marco isn't the only one who gasps at what is revealed under the helmet. Amongst inky black locks, twitching constantly, are two black and purple-striped cat ears. 

The man tosses his helmet back into the depths of the lion before turning back to Lance. Marco can't tell what expression the man - the alien? - is wearing, but Lance is _furious._

"Hey, cargo pilot."

Marco goes still at the man's voice. It's low and gravely, almost painfully dry. Lance was always miffed about being a cargo pilot, and this- this _alien_ just says it so dryly like that!? _How_ _dare he._

"That's all you have to say to me?!" Lance demands, waving his arms wildly in the air. "No, 'Sorry Lance, I decided to risk my life to fly down to Earth to surprise you', or 'Hey, I know I left healing early, but making you worry is a bigger priority than my own safety'. Are you TRYING to kill me?! Because it's fucking working!"

The man rolls his eyes - _rolls his goddamn eyes -_ and says, just as dry as before, "Drop the theatrics, you big sap."

"NO! I will _not_ just drop it this time! You almost _died_ , I thought you were _in a coma_ , and now, you just show up! No warning, no double-checking to make sure you're actually not about to die. Just- You are the fucking _worst_ sometimes!" Lance throws his hands up in the air, clearly still fuming. 

The alien man seems to soften. "You said you needed me."

Lance, too, seems to soften a little. "I need you alive, dumbass."

"As if you'd let me kick the bucket," the alien mutters.

Lance rolls his eyes this time. He mumbles something in the alien language again, something soft and vulnerable sounding, and the alien's cat ears flick flat against his head. There's a moment of silence, and then the alien is grabbing Lance's face and dragging the taller man down for a vicious kiss. 

Marco feels his jaw drop. Lance never, _never_ showed any interest in men. _Not once._ He was a massive flirt, yes, but he would never talk about men that way. Especially furry alien men that he was clearly furious with. 

But Lance doesn't break away from the kiss. In fact, he deepens it, his hands reaching up and cupping the alien's pale face. They go at it like a drowning man gulps for air. Desperation is clear in their movements, and the alien is pressed so tight against Lance's chest Marco is sure they'll fuse into one entity at any second. 

When they finally break apart, both of them collapse onto the sand, panting for breath but both of them are smiling. Lance's face is practically taken over by the sweet, lovesick smile on his face, and Marco watches with sick fascination as Lance's arms tighten around the alien, pulling the smaller body against his own. 

Marco doesn't understand the words whispered between the pair, but from the soft, almost reverent way it's spoken, the meaning is clear all the same. 

* * *

No matter how many times Lance tries to normalize the idea, Marco will never accept the fact that there's an alien standing in his kitchen. 

This, apparently, is the man that Lance has been crying to every night. The one who almost died. And, honestly, Marco can't see why anyone would want to go out of their way for. . . _this._

The alien is shorter than Lance by about half a head, and he's leaner than Lance, though the skintight white, red, and black suit he wears leaves nothing to the imagination. His hair is too long for a male of any species, spilling around his neck and shoulders in thick black waves. His eyes are too large, too bright for any human, and entirely the wrong color. His pupils are thin, cat-like, and much too visible when surrounded by the almost glowing purple irises that give the alien's entire face an eerie, non-human appearance. 

As seen before, two cat-like ears are nestled in the ratty, black hair of the alien. They are the same, ink-black as the rest of the alien's hair, but dark purple stripes mar the sleek black appearance. On the side of the alien's visible neck is a pale scar, silver against pale white skin. It almost looks like an indent of teeth, human teeth, but who would be stupid enough to bite another creature with enough force to scar?

Marco has one guess: this guy. 

The alien stands with his arms crossed, an annoyed expression on his face. He looks like the McClains are wasting his time, like he's too good for them, and that thought has Marco grinding his teeth. This fucking brat of an alien. Thinking he can walk into their house, disrupt their life, and take Lance away from them? Not going to happen.

Lance sighs. "Well, this isn't how I hoped this would be happening, but whatever. Guys, this is Keith. He's the Paladin of the Red Lion, our sword-fighting enthusiast, and my boyfriend."

Marco sees the alien twitch at the word 'boyfriend'. He narrows his eyes at 'Keith' - what alien has a name like _Keith_? Isn't stealing Lance away from Earth and manipulating him into rejecting his sexual orientation enough? Does he want to completely own Lance? That's probably a massive part of alien culture, isn't it? With the way 'Keith' is looking more and more pissed off with every second he stands in the McClain kitchen, Marco doesn't doubt it. 

But Lance? He looks more alive than Marco has seen him since he returned. There's a spark of life in his eyes that Marco hasn't seen since the first week he returned, and Marco knows he isn't the only one who sees it.

_This can't be healthy._

'Keith' is leaning heavily against Lance, and Marco's long since tuned out whatever Lance is rambling about. His weird purple eyes, while still too bright, are glassy and unfocused. Marco doesn't want to say anything, and luckily, he doesn't have to.

"Are you alright?" Lisa asks quietly.

Lance's eyes snap down to 'Keith', and he swears venomously under his breath. "You fucking idiot. God, you're a fucking _moron._ " Lance easily sweeps Keith off his feet, effortlessly carrying the alien bridal style. "You are going to stay in bed until I deem you fit, got it? If you get out of bed, so help me god, I'll make you wish you'd never been born."

'Keith' doesn't say anything, which causes Lance to glare down at his 'boyfriend'. "You hear me, Kogane?"

Slowly, 'Keith' nods. He might say something as well, but Marco isn't listening. He doubts anyone is. _Did. . . Did he just say 'Kogane'?_ Keith Kogane, the pilot prodigy, the man thought responsible for killing Lance and the other Garrison cadets for the longest time, is an _alien._

Marco shares a look with his family, the same expression of dread mirrored on all their faces. 

* * *

The next morning, Marco sits around the table with his family. Lance disappeared out the front door before Marco was even fully awake, and the entire family doubts that he'll be back anytime soon. 

Marco only half listens to Rachel and Veronica conspire about something or other. He's too busy trying to get his thoughts in order. _Was Kogane always an alien? Was he replaced? Are alien clones real? How was he hiding the ears and the eyes before? Does the Garrison know about any of this? How did Lance end up falling for an alien? A_ male _alien at that._

Marco doesn't consider himself homophobic, but he is a little freaked out at the idea of his little brother, his very, very straight little brother, suddenly deciding to date someone of the opposite gender. It doesn't make any sense to him. 

There's also the Garrison - and the McClains - being convinced that Keith Kogane had killed the missing cadets. Marco had believed that for so long, hated a man he had never met for the greatest crime he could ever imagine, and suddenly, not only is Lance alive, but he's also dating an alien with the same name - and definite physical similarities to the pictures he'd been shown - as the man Marco was convinced had murdered his younger brother. 

Short story short, Marco does not trust Keith Kogane, and he doubts he ever will. The guy isn't very good at first impressions, at least, and Marco is pissed at the very idea that Keith would force Lance to dote on him while injured. Even making Lance worry - for all the wrong reasons - is a great way to make Marco hate someone, and Keith is at the top of his 'worst people alive' list.

The entire gathered family jumps when something crashes to the floor upstairs. 

An inhuman hiss, full of both pain and something Marco thinks is panic, fills the air next, and the sound sends chills down Marco's spine. Several more thumps sound, along with the distinct shattering of glass hitting the ground. 

Then, after several moments of silence, Marco hears words. Or a word. Spoken in an increasingly panicked tone, but undeniably Keith's low, gravelly voice.

"Lance? Lancelancelancelancelancelance. Lance. Lance? Where. . . Lance?"

Marco's heart drops into his stomach like a stone. What the fuck?! 

"LANCE!" Keith screams, somehow combining his panic with an inhuman edge that doesn't send concern for the alien through Marco. Instead, all he feels is fear. Fear for Lance, and fear for the future of his family.

Marco is snapped out of his thoughts by the sound of screeching tires outside, and everyone jumps when Lance throws open the front door so hard the wood cracks. Lance doesn't spare them a second glance as he rushes upstairs, and Marco doesn't hesitate in following his brother upstairs. 

He gets upstairs in time to see Lance wrap Keith up in his arms, pulling the smaller man against his chest. Lance runs his fingers through Keith's thick hair, whispering soothing words in the alien language. The room is completely trashed, with a broken glass lying on the ground, the entire bedside table tipped over, and a multitude of other broken things scattered throughout the room.

Marco's first reaction is anger, assuming that Keith destroyed the room for Lance's attention or to piss off Lance's family even further. But then he catches a glimpse of Keith.

The entire side of his neck is bloody and red, and his fingers are _drenched_ in blood. Marco catches sight of claws tipping the bloody digits, and his stomach suddenly feels as though it's made of lead. Keith is whimpering into Lance's shoulder, sounding genuinely distressed, and his big, cat eyes are squeezed closed, watery tears dripping out the corners. 

He thinks about interrupting, about demanding answers. But he takes one look at Lance's concerned expression, taking the way Keith clings to Lance like he'll die if Lance moves, and turns around. 

His situation just got a lot more complicated. 

* * *

Lance only appears for brief moments over the next couple of days. He doesn't speak to anyone. He simply retrieves whatever he went out to buy, grabs food and water from the kitchen, and vanishes into the room he now shares with Keith. 

Marco's head is whirling. He, like everyone else, wants answers, but not in the same way the others want them. He wants to understand, and he suspects that Mom does as well, but the rest of the family wants justice. They want to punish and hate the creature their son and brother has brought into their house, and Marco would be with them if he hadn't seen how vulnerable Keith had been, wrapped in Lance's arms and covered in blood. 

For the first time since Lance came back, Marco is going to wait for Lance to explain before he makes any big assumptions.

* * *

To everyone's surprise, Keith is up and walking before Lance one morning. He slinks down the stairs wearing a pair of Lance's sweatpants and a loose black tank top, displaying a multitude of deep purple scars that criss-cross up his arms like stripes. A black and purple tail that Marco didn't notice before lashes behind him. 

The entire right side of his neck is covered in gauze, a few spots tinted pink and obviously hinting at the wounds beneath. 

The neck wounds are what draw the eye, but Marco is sure he's the only one that sees the sickly hint to Keith's already pale skin and how his too-bright eyes have deep shadows under them. He's the only one to notice that Keith's hands twitch and shake before he eventually balls them into fists.

Marco watches the rest of the family take in Keith's new wounds, all of them reacting in the same emotions: shock and confusion. Not outright fear or distrust, though those elements are definitely there if Marco looks for them. 

Everyone waits silently as Keith pours himself a cup of coffee, and Mom purses her lips as Keith begins to dig through the fridge, but no one says anything about it. Keith takes a long drink from his coffee after digging out an apple from the fridge, and Marco can't help but flinch back a little when Keith is able to unhinge his jaw enough to bite off half the apple, long, _sharp_ fangs on clear display. 

Eventually, Veronica gets sick of waiting. "What the fuck happened to your neck?"

Keith's glowing eyes snap to her, and Marco thinks he sees a bit of yellow sneak into the whites of his eyes. He swallows the apple in his mouth, and he seems to take a deep breath before answering. 

"It's nothing you need to worry about."

"Bullshit!" Veronica snaps. "You destroy an entire room and start calling for Lance like a fucking crazy person, and then you show up with a mauled up neck?! That'll make anyone worry!"

Keith's eyes narrow, and his tail lashes, the black and purple fur fluffed up like an upset cat's. "You're not worried about me. You're worried about what'll happen to Lance if something happens to me."

Everyone flinches back at that, and it's immediately obvious that he was right in his assumption. 

Keith sighs when no one says anything. "You're going to find out anyway, I suppose." He takes a long drink from his coffee, and he lets out a shaky breath. Almost like he's. . . nervous. "Sometimes, if I wake up and Lance isn't there. . ." He trails off, gesturing to his neck with a hand. "It's been worse than this before, but we should have expected it to happen when he left."

"But that doesn't explain how Lance got home so fast. How would he know that you're having a spaz attack?" Veronica demands.

Keith's ears twitch back against his head, the fur fluffing out like his tail. "I am. . . half-Galra, and we. . . We have a mating bond that allows mates to feel where the other is, emotions, things like that. It's not total mind-reading, but it's pretty close. I have it stronger since Lance isn't Galra, but he can feel when my emotions spike." His tail twitches, and his eyes narrow at a spot on the wall behind the gathered McClains. "It makes the separation anxiety worse."

"Sounds pretty inconvenient," Rachel grouses. "How are you supposed to break up if you feel each other's emotions?"

Keith's glare turns to Rachel for a long moment, before he looks every member of the McClain family directly in the eyes. "I don't know what _delusions_ you have in your heads, but Galra mate for life, and if you even _think_ that I would _ever_ let anything hurt Lance, you are sorely mistaken. I risked my life to get Lance back to you in one piece, and if this is how you're going to react to him being back, in much better shape than the rest of us, might I add, then maybe he shouldn't have come back at all."

The alien doesn't waste any time in leaving the kitchen, coffee abandoned on the counter, and the whole house shakes at the slamming of a door upstairs. 

For once, the McClain house is silent, and Marco is sure that no one knows exactly what to think after _that._

* * *

Lance comes downstairs half an hour later, and his blue eyes are alight with fury. The slow, tentative conversations just barely started after Keith's departure immediately grind to a halt, and everyone turns their gaze toward Lance, waiting for him to say something. 

Lance paces in front of the table, mumbling things under his breath. "Keith is. . . complicated, I know," Lance begins, "but he is not someone to be scared of. Yes, he is half-Galra, and yes, that was a huge problem for all of us to deal with, but Keith is practically harmless if you make the effort to get to know him."

Rachel glares at her twin, eyes hard and cold. "How do we know he hasn't blackmailed you? Brainwashed you? Taken advantage of you?"

Various other members of the family hum in agreement, echoing the sentiments they've all thought in the week or so since Keith forced himself into their lives. Marco and Mom are the only ones to not hum along, and Marco is sure that if Luis and Lisa were here - they're back at their house with Nadia and Silvio - they wouldn't completely agree. 

Lance blinks in shock at his family, eyes wide and hurt. "Is that. . . You really think that? That Keith would do something like that? Keith is. . . He's gentle, and protective, and so, so loyal. He could never do something like that, no matter what you seem to think of him."

Rachel huffs, and Veronica says, "He's half-Galra, right? Aren't they the assholes you were fighting? How do we know we can trust him? He could be deceiving you. Tricking you."

Lance snorts, but there's no humor in the sound. "You sound like Allura. Before we even went to space, Keith didn't know he was anything but human. He might have been stronger than normal and more alert, but not to the degree of him being non-human. Out of all of us - except maybe Allura - he took the news the hardest."

Veronica narrows her eyes. "Sorry, little bro, but I won't believe it until I see it, and right now, neither of you are doing a very good job of being believable."

She gets up, storming out of the kitchen, and slowly, every member of the McClain family trickles out, leaving an angry and confused Lance behind. 

* * *

The McClains decide to have a beach day, but Lance insists on staying home with Keith, who can't be seen in public. Mom and Dad clearly want to make it up to Lance, and even Veronica and Rachel look desperate to reconcile with Lance. Marco knows that things won't be better between all of them until they all find a way to accept Keith into their lives, and everyone knows that. 

So Marco volunteers to stay behind. Lance gives him a suspicious glance, but he must decide that Marco is acceptable enough to stay home. But, he does give Marco a warning.

"I'll know if you do anything to him, and lord help you if you hurt him. I'll tear you apart, family be damned," Lance had whispered in Marco's ear, threatening and just low enough that none of the others heard. 

It's been a couple of hours since everyone left, and Marco hasn't heard a thing from Keith in that entire time. _I should check on him._ If he started freaking out like he did the last time Lance left the house, Marco actually wants to help this time. He looked up some instances of separation anxiety, and that shit looks _hard._ It looks incredibly painful, and if Keith and Lance are really 'bonded' like Keith says they are, it must be so much worse. 

Marco knocks on Keith's door. "Can I come in?"

He hears Keith hum from the other side of the door, and he takes as an affirmative. Keith is sitting on the bed he and Lance share, back braced on the wall and a book in his hands. Laid out on the bed is a collection of colored pencils and markers, along with a black leather sketchbook that Marco decides to not touch. 

A thick, awkward silence sits between them for a long while, Marco trying to find a good way to start a conversation or at least get some way to understand what goes through Keith's brain, but Keith beats him to it.

"What do you want?"

"Huh?"

"You've made sure I'm not dying. Your obligations here are over."

 _Just gotta bite the bullet, Marco._ "I'm sorry. About the others. This whole situation has been hard on us, and we don't know how to cope with it. Everyone else wants to deny that there's a problem, and we all want the old Lance back, but. . . I accept that Lance has changed, even if I don't want him to. And I accept that you are an important part of Lance's life."

Keith blinks at Marco, clearly shocked. "What?"

"I don't like you, not yet at least, but I know that Lance cares about you, and even if the others can't see it, I can see that you care about Lance too, so I'm going to give you a chance."

Slowly, a small smile works its way onto Keith's face, and he's actually fairly handsome when he smiles. Marco looks at his still-bandaged neck and makes an offer he probably should have thought about a little more.

"Do you need help with your neck?"

Again, Keith seems shocked, but stiffly, he nods. "Lance doesn't trust me to do it myself," Keith admits quietly. "If it's not too much trouble, could you help me with the other one too? Lance forgot to change it this morning, and I can feel the blood drying."

"Other one?" Marco echoes as Keith gets to his feet. 

Keith nods again, and he shrugs off the shirt he was wearing. Marco has to bite his hand to keep from gasping. Keith's torso is a mess of scars and marks, all of them some form of purple. There are a couple of lilac slash wounds scattered about, while the burn scars are a deep, reddish-purple. There's a blackish-purple scar that looks like it could have taken his entire shoulder off. And then, of course, there's a still bandaged area, but it's massive, taking up nearly half of Keith's side. There's also an exit wound on his back, and it's even bigger than the front. 

"You don't have to do this," Keith points out. "I can get Lance to do it the second he comes back."

For once, Keith doesn't seem angry or annoyed. He looks anxious and a little wary, the complete opposite of the angry, prowling murder-machine that had been stalking through the house just a day before. He looks. . . human.

Marco finds himself nodding. "I want to do it. I want to. . . understand a little. About what really happened up there. Lance sugarcoats it whenever we ask."

Keith rolls his eyes. "He doesn't want to scare you off."

Keith leads Marco into the bathroom, pointing to several large rolls of gauze and an alien-looking ointment. "The gauze is normal, but the ointment is from the castle. It keeps scabs from peeling and makes sure the skin doesn't pull or catch on anything. Make sure to use a lot of it."

Marco nods and slowly begins peeling away the gauze stuck to Keith's neck. The claw wounds are red and barely scabbed, but the skin around the silver bite mark is completely healed, almost like magic. He decides not to ask about the scar itself, instead lathering on a good amount of the ointment Keith pointed to. 

"How does. . . How does this bond thing with Lance work?"

Keith tenses for a moment before relaxing slightly. "Why?"

"I'm curious, and as I said before, I want to understand. I can't say I won't be judgemental, but at the moment, I don't have much information, and what little information I have leads to a very unflattering opinion."

Keith snorts. "It's hard to believe you're related to Lance."

Marco chuckles. "Yeah, it feels that way sometimes." He slowly wraps up the scratch wounds, empathizing with Keith when the alien winces in pain. 

"A Galran mating bond, I've been told, is very sacred," Keith begins with a huff. "I wasn't raised by Galra, so I don't have any idea what that could possibly mean, but what I do know is that I'll never be able to leave Lance. He's it for me. If he decided to leave me. . ." Keith's ears twitch back, and his hands clench. "Broken bonds are supposed to kill full-blooded Galra, but I don't know what it'd do to me."

Marco blinks, unprepared to see Keith so vulnerable. "I'm sorry."

"It's fine," Keith assures. "You didn't know. I didn't expect any of you to react to the bond very well. None of the team did."

"What does that mean?" Marco asks, hoping he's not pushing too hard.

Keith is silent for a moment, but he answers when Marco begins to unwrap the massive wound in his side. "Shiro is basically our dad, up there, so he was upset when I didn't tell him I was getting 'married'. Pidge was fine with it, but Hunk was horrible about it. He's always been very nervous around me, especially after I started looking like a Galra, and I know he didn't want Lance and me together. I don't think he's completely fine with it, even now."

He pauses here, as if reliving something painful. Marco decides not to push, and he turns his focus on the wound in front of him. It's ugly, scarred a dark red around the edges, and the middle is oozing purple-red blood. He's very careful about applying the ointment, making sure to pause whenever Keith stiffens or winces. 

Marco is re-wrapping the wound when Keith picks up the conversation again.

"Allura was never really a big fan of me. I was too violent for her, always challenging her authority and never listening to rules without giving her lip about it. When we all found out I was Galra, she. . . didn't take it well. And I was fine with that. The Galra destroyed her entire planet. It was justified."

"She's the princess Lance always talks about, right?"

Keith nods, and he's lost in thought for a few more seconds. "She has mostly gotten used to me being on the castle, but she doesn't trust me. When. . . She was the one who realized we were bonded." Keith takes a deep breath, obviously struggling with something, and Marco gives him the time he clearly needs.

The exit wound is horrible. None of it completely scarred, and it looks very raw. Marco slowly works the ointment in, patiently waiting for Keith to continue his explanation. 

It takes until Marco has almost finished wrapping up the exit wound for Keith to finally continue speaking. 

"Me and Lance bonding. . . It was an accident," Keith admits. "We were half-asleep, and Lance mumbled something about wanting to marry me. I. . . Some instinct took over, and I bit him. Luckily, it's low enough on his neck that he can hide it, but I hadn't expected him to bite me back. They scarred almost immediately, and it was the best moment of my life. I just. . . felt so _complete_ , and. . . there's no real way to describe it. It's something you feel, and from what other Galra have told me, it's different for everyone. But they all agree that it's something special, that a bond should be cherished."

Keith lets out another explosive breath, and for a second, Marco expects him to shut down. But he continues. "Allura walked into the kitchen, saw the scar on my neck, and she knew what we had done, even if I hadn't at the time. The first thing she did was demand to see Lance's. And immediately after, she ordered us to break it. She said she wasn't going to have one of her Paladins 'tied down' by a filthy hybrid like me."

Keith laughs lowly, a self-deprecating laugh Marco has heard from Lance several times. "I was 21. Lance was 20. We had no idea what she was talking about, and I had absolutely no understanding of what a Galran mating bond was. All I knew was that I loved Lance so much I'd die if he left me. 

"She called up Kolivan before any of the others were awake, and I was relieved when he said that breaking a new bond would result in death for both parties. That didn't stop her from trying to split us up anyway. She, Hunk, and Shiro all worked together to make sure Lance and I didn't spend time together, trying to keep the bond weak so we wouldn't die immediately when Allura eventually broke it."

Marco sucks in a breath. _This can't end well._

"One night, Lance couldn't sneak into my room to sleep with me. I know he got sick from the bond and my own panic, but I barely remember what happened after I woke up. The only thing that mattered was that Lance wasn't there, and I must have attacked Shiro and Hunk in an attempt to get to him." Keith's jaw tightens. "When they held me back, I blacked out. Apparently, I went completely feral, tore the whole room to shit, and when there wasn't anything left to destroy, I started tearing myself apart. 

"By that point, Shiro and Hunk must have realized something was wrong, and the next thing I know, I'm waking up in Lance's arms, bleeding and crying."

Keith shudders, and Marco stands up, offering Keith his hand. "You don't have to keep going," Marco says quietly. "I can't imagine how that must have felt."

"It was the worst thing I've ever experienced. According to Kolivan, being separated caused tension in our bond, which creates separation anxiety. Now, whenever we're apart, we get irritable or anxious. When I wake up without him, without knowing where he is, I lose my mind."

"Thank you, for this."

Keith gives Marco another small smile. "Thank you for being willing to listen."

* * *

Marco and Keith spend the rest of the day lounging around in the living room, Keith watching TV and Marco reacting to the alien's strange reactions to things. Despite apparently being raised on Earth, Keith has the weirdest ways of reacting to things, especially relationships.

"Why wouldn't you just tell someone you're pregnant?" Keith grumbles after watching an episode of a romantic sitcom Marco didn't recognize. "Honestly, humans are so _weird._ "

"Well, some couples don't want to have children, or they do and simply can't afford it," Marco begins to explain.

"Then take the proper precautions!" Keith exclaims. "How hard is it to pop a pill once a day? Not hard!"

Marco snorts. "You won't have to worry about that, though."

Keith sighs, sounding more sad than annoyed. "Lance wants kids. He doesn't think I know, but I do. It's one of his big things. 'We're gonna have the biggest family, Keith. Just you wait.' It's a bit. . . disappointing that I can't give him those things."

"Now that you're back on Earth, can't you adopt?"

"We could, but. . . Male Galra can get pregnant. Well, most of them can. I just. . . Being half-Galra, I have all the equipment, but it would almost certainly kill both me and the baby if I tried to bring one to term." And fuck, Keith sounds absolutely destroyed when he says that. How could Marco have thought this guy was an ass? He's so. . . broken? Is that the right word?

Keith is very sad, is what Marco is trying to say. Underneath all the sarcasm and hostility, there's a very sad and very genuine person, and Marco wishes he had seen that sooner. 

"I'm so sorry."

Keith huffs, pulling the blanket he's using closer. "I've gotten over it. It's just. . . hard, not fitting in anywhere."

Marco can't even imagine how that feels, to be stuck between two completely different cultures like that and not fitting into either one. What was it like for him, to realize that he wasn't entirely human? To start losing that humanity to more alien-like features? _What have we done? Why would we assume that everything wrong with Lance is Keith's fault?_ If anything, Keith is more tortured than Lance, and Marco feels something in the pit of his stomach. 

But unlike before, this anger isn't directed toward Keith. This anger is directed at his family _for_ Keith. 

* * *

The family returns late, so late that Marco has trouble staying awake long enough to see everyone return home. But something immediately stands out. Lance isn't there.

Keith notices right away, Marco notes. He has his normal bored expression, but his ears are standing straight up and his tail is lashing. His eyes are narrowed, but there's a faraway look to them, as if he's searching for something Marco can't see. 

Whatever he feels, Keith relaxes enough for Marco to assume it's positive and that Lance isn't dead. Still, out of curiosity, Marco stays up to see where exactly Lance went. 

About an hour after the rest of the family came home, Marco hears a car outside. Keith perks up, much more relaxed now that the rest of the family is upstairs and asleep. There's excitement clear on his face, so Marco doubts Lance was out doing anything illegal or stupid. _But Keith doesn't exactly seem to find 'normal' things exciting._

His thought is proved, but not in the way Marco expected it to be. 

Lance walks through the front door, a massive purple and black. . . hippo? It's easily five feet tall, probably taller, and looks soft as hell. Marco snickers at Keith's expression as Lance brings it in. The alien is practically vibrating in excitement, and Lance has the biggest shit-eating grin on his face.

"Well, you said you wanted plushies, and I figured go big or go home," Lance laughs, setting the hippo down on the floor in front of the couch where Keith is sitting. 

Keith just stares at the hippo for a moment, jaw practically hitting the floor with how wide his mouth is. He blinks a couple of times, and his mouth shuts with an audible _click_. It drops open again within a second, and Keith slowly reaches out to touch the monstrosity. Marco has to fight down a laugh when Keith carefully crawls on top of the hippo, rubbing his chin and the uninjured side of his neck against the softness of the plushie. 

A soft, almost nonexistent rumbling makes itself known, and Marco stares in shock at Keith, another laugh fighting its way into his throat. _This is ridiculous._ He knows that the Galra are cat-like humanoids, but he didn't know Keith could _purr._ It's adorable, and Marco is completely baffled at the thought that he could have ever hated Keith. _This is the cutest thing I've ever seen._

"Is this a bad time to say that there's a crocodile one too? I also got one that kinda looks like a lion, but they didn't have a red one, so it's purple instead."

Keith stops nuzzling the hippo to stare at Lance. A second later, Lance has his arms full of his boyfriend, and Marco quietly leaves before things can get. . . graphic. 

_Keith isn't all that bad._

* * *

Marco makes an effort to stick near Keith and Lance in the house, and the pair seems to enjoy his company. He isn't completely on board with whatever happened in space, and he definitely doesn't want Lance to go back up there - Marco knows he will, and that he can't stop Lance, but it's hard to remember that Lance is stronger than all of them now - but he likes Keith and loves Lance. 

Lance seems happier as well, and with Keith on the mend, both of them are downstairs more often. Lance has taken it upon himself to educate Keith on all things pop-culture, and Marco is more than happy to help him.

One day, Keith and Marco are sitting on the back porch while Lance plays with Silvio and Nadia in front of them. Everyone else is inside getting ready for dinner. 

"And Lance decided to try and flirt with this alien princess. A lot of girls were actually into him for some reason, but what we didn't know was that this princess is actually already betrothed, and her fiancé was actually at the gala we were attending. He happened to see Lance try to pick up the princess, and there was almost a drunk, ballroom fight," Keith explains. 

"Shiro was _plastered,_ and Hunk had gone back to the castle for some reason, so it was me, Pidge, and a drunk Lance against like the entire royal guard. We did get the alliance, but Lance is no longer allowed in the palace, and I heard from Allura that Lance is considered a 'homewrecker' on that planet now."

Marco snickers. "That sounds like Lance, alright."

"Mhmm," Keith hums. "The castle should be in orbit in a couple of days, so Lance and I are going to have to head up there. We'll - or at least he'll - be needed for the diplomatic meetings. Earth is very complicated in comparison to the other planets in the coalition. It's the only planet with little to no knowledge of other planets, and none of them have ever seen an alien before, so it'll be pretty messy for the next couple weeks."

"Complicated how?" Marco asks despite knowing what kind of drastic measures revealing the existence of aliens could lead to. 

Keith's brows furrow. "Riots, hostility, demanding experimentation on the lions, the Alteans, and myself, among other things. Humans are a very hostile and ignorant race. They don't know what is best for them, and they often discriminate against what is different or doesn't conform to what they already know."

"For good reason," Rachel huffs, causing both Keith and Marco to jump. Keith's expression immediately sours, and Marco notices his muscles tensing, as if expecting a fight. "Aliens are dangerous, according to what you and Lance have said. How would we know what's safe and what isn't? Because you tell us? Why should we trust any of you?"

Keith's fingers twitch, but his voice is calm. "All of the Paladins are from Earth, and while there are hostile races of alien, whether Earth decides to interact with any of them is completely up to what the governments decide to do."

"So, what? You're going to dump the existence of aliens on us and leave? How generous," Rachel sasses.

"I'm sure Allura intends to make the transition as seamless as possible. Several of the Paladins will likely stay here as well, to help normalize the existence of aliens."

"And what about you and Lance? You aren't staying, are you? Where are the rest of you going to be?"

"There are several smaller factions of hostile aliens that could have followed the castle to your solar system, so Lance and I will be making sure nothing unsavory gets through to Earth while it is defenseless."

"You aren't taking Lance away from us. We just got him back! You aren't stealing him from us a second time!" Rachel snaps.

"Rachel!" Marco reprimands, but his sister just keeps going. 

"I mean, what are you? Some second choice? That princess is exactly his type, from what I've heard, and I don't care what fucking space magic you used to turn my brother into a faggot, but I guarantee he went for the princess first. You're just a rebound, and he'll realize that soon enough."

Keith growls, actually _growls_ , and the whites of his eyes glow a bright, inhuman yellow, his teeth bared in a snarl, but he shakes his head, muttering something alien under his breath. Keith stalks past Rachel without another word, fur puffed up and muscles tight.

Rachel, for her part, looks too fucking smug for what she just did. Allura tried to break Keith and Lance up! Tried to break a bond Keith says is sacred and can only happen once in a _lifetime_! How _dare_ Rachel compare Keith to someone like _that._

Lance comes up to Rachel and Marco as well, brows furrowed and arms crossed. "What happened?" Marco fights down the sick pride at Lance turning to _him_ for answers. 

"Rachel blamed Keith for turning you gay and said you would be better off with the princess," Marco says coldly, narrowing his eyes at Rachel.

Lance's jaw tightens, and there's murder in his eyes when he growls, "Inside. _Now._ "

Marco and Rachel follow him inside, and Lance gathers the entire family in the living room. Lance stands in front of the gathered family, eyes narrowed and burning with fury. 

"I have given you space. I have given you time. I have tried to let this play out naturally. Clearly, I was expecting too much of you." The disappointment in Lance's tone is palpable. "I'm going to say this clearly so you all understand.

" _Either you get both Keith and I, or you get neither of us._ " Lance's voice is ice cold, and everyone flinches at the implication.

"Keith is my boyfriend. He is both my partner on the battlefield and in life. We are a packaged deal. Where I go, he goes. There is no way around that, and no one, not even my family, is going to stop me from taking care of him. Keith is the strongest Paladin, and he has been through so much _shit_ in his life. 

"You know what I did in space? I got homesick, horribly, _horribly_ homesick. I missed all of you every day I was up there. And you know what helped that? Talking to Keith about it. Because Keith wanted to know what a real family is like. Because all Keith got for a family was an alien mother who abandoned him at birth, a dead father, and a dozen foster parents that didn't give a shit about him.

"I told Keith about how wonderful my family was. I would talk to him for hours about how accepting and nice you all were. I was _so sure_ that you were going to accept him, no matter whether he looked Galran or human, whether we were bonded or not. That princess I talk about? Yeah, she's gorgeous. Yeah, I did have an infatuation with her. But you know what she did? She tried to kick Keith off the team for his _genetics._ She didn't accept him, so I guess I shouldn't have expected you guys to accept him either. Silly me.

"Keith didn't even know he was half-alien when he went to space. He looked human. He thought he was human. We all thought that Keith was weird, but he had nobody to take care of him back on Earth, so we just thought he was socially awkward.

"Keith is the most loyal, self-sacrificing person you'll ever meet. He doesn't think he'll ever be worth anything, and all because he's half-Galran. He sees himself as his own enemy. He struggles with body dysmorphia. When he started looking like a Galra, he wanted to cut off his tail! He struggles _so hard_ with trying to see himself through the weird eyes and the ears and the tail and the purple scars. 

"And through all of it, you know what I told him? I said, 'Don't worry Keith, the Paladins are your family in space, and when we get back to Earth, my family is going to _love you_ '. 

"Clearly, I was expecting too much from you. You all are so blinded by your need for everything to go back to the way it was that you hate Keith for just existing! I _love_ Keith with everything I have. No, Keith isn't perfect. No, Keith isn't the most social, or the most talkative, or the easiest to get along with, but he is _so good._ He _cares_ , and he'd do anything to protect those he cares about. 

"He's taken bullets for me. He's fought armies for me. And you know what? He might be my boyfriend, but he'd do that for _anyone._ Allura hates his guts, and Hunk won't be in a room alone with him, but he'd put himself in mortal danger to protect him. Keith's life means practically nothing to him, and he'd kill himself if he thought that would make everything easier for those around him.

"Half of Keith's scars are there because of me. Because he took hits I should have taken. And he did it so that I could come home to you. He nearly _died_ a month ago, and the only thing on his mind was getting me home to my family, my wonderful, nice family that I've told him so much about." Lance's voice breaks, and he looks like he's about to cry. From anger or from grief, Marco isn't sure.

"I love all of you, I _do_ , but Keith is everything to me. I would be dead a dozen times over if it hadn't been for him.

"If you push him away, I'll be going with him. So get over yourselves and _idiotic_ prejudices or I won't be here much longer. Keith is scarred. Keith is a murderer. Keith is a war hero. But so am I, and the only real difference between us is that I'm family and Keith isn't. 

"Pull off your rose-tinted glasses. I am just as broken as Keith is, and if you keep treating Keith like a convicted criminal or a monster, we're both leaving. The universe isn't black and white, and you can't keep living in your fucking dream world any longer."

Lance stalks over to the stairway. "I'll be with Keith, and I don't want to see any of you until you _grow the fuck up._ "

* * *

Marco takes Keith and Lance their food for the next couple of days, and he spends most of his time ranting to Mom and Dad about how Lance is right. Lance is _fucking right._ Keith is a good person under his prickly exterior.

It won't be instantaneous, but after Lance's passionate rant, Marco has noticed a change in his family.

They're willing to try. They're scared of losing their family member, and they are loyal enough to try. They're only doing it for Lance, but that's enough. 

Giving Keith a chance is enough. 

**Author's Note:**

> I will welcome criticism. Lord knows I'm not the best writer out there, and while I do like this piece, I am never really satisfied with anything I write. 
> 
> So, yeah, thank you for reading my massive pile of word vomit. If you want to check out some more 'Keith meets Lance's family' works, check out TangoDancer's [ Other](https://archiveofourown.org/works/10917585). I took a lot of inspiration from that work, and it's really well-written in my opinion. Be sure to check it out.


End file.
